With a name like The Dope Factory, I expected
something hard hitting, powerful, as dope as the
original Dope Factory depicted in the Cheech & Chong
movie "Up In Smoke". Blazing, so amazing, everything.

The back cover of the CD shows an illustrated version
of what I assumed was the group itself, so I wasn't
sure what to expect. The CD booklet featured various
shots of the guys in the group in the studio, hanging
out, getting high, falling sleep. Could be something
promising.

As we all know by now, "never judge a book by its
cover". "Take Over" begins with an audio manipilation
of U.S. President George W. Bush, call it a
metaphorical truth serum. Then they start up by
turning on the mic, by stating they're going back to
1992 and 1993, not that "shit that you don't want to
listen to". "Take Over" was very promising, but
instead becomes an introduction for about six of the
members. I was waiting for them to drop a few words
of wisdom about the state of the world, but came out empty.

Unfortunately, most of "Throw a Dollar on the Beam"
comes off empty too. "Sandwich Bags" is a reference
to the way one stores illegal drugs for easy
transport, and the song tries to make a plea that
"living fast" to make ends meet is the way to live.
Instead, it comes off harder than a medium shirt on a
woman with a 60 inch waist. The lyrics itself, making
references to "fast life, fast death, fast bitches,
fast cars", would sound believable if these guys
weren't so busy trying to disguise their voices as
cartoon characters. It sounds silly, I wouldn't want
to hear a full rap album with someone who sounds more
like a gangster sidekick. Not unlike
Bone-Thugs-N-Harmony.

Some of the rappers also handle the beats and
production, and while this style of keyboard/synth
production is not to my liking, I think they are
better off being a Dope Factory for other rappers.
Some of the flows sound dry and dated, and by the time
you catch a pretty good line or two (found in songs
like "Killin' In The Cornfield" and "Cold Cuts"),
you'll want to skip to the next song. To me, rap
music is all about telling your own story in a unique
matter, and I can't find anything about this CD that
is distinctly unique, outside of the George W. Bush
recording. It sounds like the same stories I heard on
a rap record 5 years ago, 10 years ago, 15 years ago.
It is The Dope Factory, but it's "dope" in the
original definition of the word.